A Hero's Return
by BareFootRaider
Summary: Since i haven't read the Dark Nest Trilogy, and don't plan to, i decided to write the return of Jacen Solo from his five year force journey. This takes place a few months before Joiner King. Enjoy!
1. Chapter 1

Jaina Solo was in her room taking apart and putting back together her lightsaber, because she was utterly bored. With Jacen gone, Jag somewhere in the galaxy, Zekk trying so hard to impress her, and Ben doing who knows what, Jaina could not entertain herself forever.

To her delight, the door buzzed to Ben Skywalker smirking in the doorway, "Want to play sabbacc?" he asked.

Jaina turned around to face her younger cousin, eyeing him suspiciously. "Sure," Almost afraid to ask she added, "What are we playing for?"

"Nothing. Uncle Han thinks that since I have nothing to do, cleaning the _Falcon_ would be fun. I decided cleaning the _Falcon _is not my idea of fun unless I make it interesting. Play me in a game of sabbacc. Winner cleans, loser gets to sit back drinking iced tea and laughing." Ben crossed his arms, still smirking.

Jaina sighed to herself, "Kid, I'm doing this as a favor, to teach you a lesson. Get the cards out and we'll play in the dinning area." Shaking her head she got up and followed him to the table.

"Why you little…!"

"Ah, ah, ah Jaina. We had an agreement. I take it you know where the cleaning supplies are?" Ben smirked once again, leaving Jaina mad, and confused.

"How the kriff? What have you been doing?" She had to get answers to her surprising defeat.

"My mother is Mara Jade Skywalker. She's beaten Lando Calrissian before." Jaina crossed her arms and stalked off to change, and then made her way to the _Falcon._

Four hours later, Ben was slouched on the couch flipping through the Holonet, because he was absolutely bored. That is until his cousin walked in. Her hair was pulled back in a ponytail with little strands of lose hair flying everywhere. Her white tank top, and gray pants were stained with grease, oil, and grim. He mischievously grinned as she pointed the hydrospanner in her hand at him.

"Next time _you_ will be cleaning the _Falcon. _I don't care who your parents are." Walking past him she said, "Don't come near the 'fresher at all. I don't care if the Emperor himself has come back from the dead to make me a Sith lady."

When Jaina was out of earshot, Ben burst out laughing. No one was in the apartment, except Jaina and himself, so the laughing fit kept return every few minutes.

Jacen Solo walked the familiar path to his family's old apartment. When the Galactic Alliance had first reclaimed Coruscant, Jaina had said their parents had fixed up their apartment first. Jacen knew things had changed, but that still didn't make his last few trips to the planet any different. I had been about five years since the Yuuzhan Vong had left. Yet everyone was still recovering. Jacen walked into the building, taking a deep breath in and holding tight to his knapsack almost terrified of what he might find.

About an hour after Jaina had stomped off to the bathroom Ben had finally decided what to do. Sleep. Right as he was about to enter his dreamland, the main entrance of the apartment buzzed.

"Threepio!" Only when he yelled the name did her realized he had asked the droid to shut off for the rest of the day. "Oh never mind." Lugging his body off the couch and into the foyer Ben opened to door. The man standing in front of him was tall, broad shouldered, dark haired man in his early twenties.

"Oh sorry. It's been awhile wrong apart…Ben?" The man looked at Ben with a sense of recognition and joy. "Is it really you?"

Ben stood in the door surprised, and anxious to see his cousin. "Jacen?" Ben smiled at Jacen, "Welcome home!" Jacen returned the gesture with a famous lopsided Solo grin. _Man, Jaina was right. Just like Uncle Han. _

Before Ben or Jacen could say anymore, Jaina walked out in a white robe and a towel on her head, "Ben I hope you didn't order anymore take-out…" She froze in her steps, wide eyed, and gaping at her brother. "Jacen…?" She ran to embrace her brother. Ben watched as the twins connected more deeply than the eye could see.

"I missed you Jay." He whispered in her eye.

"I missed you more." Jaina whispered back with tears in her eyes. She squeezed him one last time and pulled away, wiping tears from her eyes. Realizing she hadn't done exactly what she had told Ben she would do if she ever saw her twin again. Jaina punched her twin playfully, yet still with some force after her emotional timer ended.

"Good to see you too, Jaina. What was that for?" Jacen said, rubbing his shoulder.

"That was for leaving for five years, and not sending a message for a month the last two years! You had dad and I worried sick for months!"

"What about mom?"

"Mom didn't worry. She trusted you could take care of yourself or some poodoo like that. Dad had the right idea." She smiled at her brother, "I thought maybe you could handle yourself, but that whole big-sister-by-two-minutes kicked into gear, and decided it didn't want to lose another brother."

Jacen smiled back at his sister, "You underestimate someone who survived Vong captivity. Not smart."

"Right. I'll try not to underestimate you again, maybe we can teach our cousin a lesson or two."

"Don't worry Jaina, I won't underestimate you either." Placing a hand on his sister's shoulder.

Sighing once more she said, "I really missed you, Jace."

Deciding now was as good a time as ever to test Jacen Solo Ben added; "She even moped around more when you felt than she did for Jag."

Jaina shot a glare at Ben, "No more from you. You've caused me enough trouble as it is."

"More than Jag, huh? I like this kid, he's a good bluff." Jacen smirked, "I could work with him."

"Oh you have no idea, Jacen Solo." Ben had the feeling Jacen wouldn't be a gape in his life anymore. After countless stories and holos, Ben was finally going to have a lasting relationship with his cousin, "Welcome back to the family, Jace."


	2. Chapter 2

**Sorry, I know it's been awhile, but I've been gone. During my trip it took two days to get home, and for some reason Jacen Solo kept popping up in my head. It took me about three plane rides to finish Traitor yet again. I felt I needed to write some more fiction as well, but didn't want to start a whole new story. So I present to you Chapter 2 of A Hero's Return…**

Jaina relaxed on the sofa. _Everything is right again. _With the Holonet as the only light in the room, she closed her eyes and focused on the sound of speeders whizzing by the apartment. It was late and the only people in the apartment besides Jaina herself were Ben Skywalker, and her twin brother. _Back from the dead, yet again. _

Jaina had been pretty much babysitting for a week, so she had appointed Jacen to oversee Ben's preparation for sleep. A small smile came across her lips. _Your welcome, brother. _Jaina heard a crash in the refresher and a loud _Stang! _ from Ben.

Her mind wondered to the last time Jacen had come home…

_The room was dark, but her whole being lit up with the Force. She lay on her back in the floor of her parent's cabin. Her twin brother, her only brother now, was in the exact same position with his head only inches from her own. She closed her eyes to be bathed in the waves radiating from their twin bond now fully complete._

_ "Jacen?" Her voice was barely a whisper, not to wake her sleeping parents._

_ "Yes, Jay?" His voice was equally quiet, though a bit more relaxed than Jaina. No doubt he was enveloped in the bond as well. _

_In her own Jaina Solo way she jumped to the point, "What happened to you? What did the Vong do to you?" _

_ Jacen was silent for a long moment. Unusually silent. His breathing had even seemed to quiet. "A lot happened, Jaina. I don't think now's a good time for this."_

_ "Then when will it be a good time, Jace? When we're both hanging from the Embrace of Pain, assuming our positions as the twin gods and getting ready for sacrifice?" Her voice had risen, but she fought to contain it, "What did _Vergere _do to you?"_

_ His quiet proved to Jaina she was going to get what she was asking for, "Jaina, I can't tell you. It would be to much of a burden on your already piled shoulders." _

_ "Tell me what happened, Jacen."_

_ He sighed and spoke slowly, "I was in the Embrace of Pain for weeks. Pain, and relief, on and off for weeks. Each torture would end with release, never allowing me to fully let go," Jaina was mildly surprised not to hear any pain or sorrow in his voice. Instead she heard…fondness. "I was child then Jaina, and couldn't understand anything. Vergere…taught me how to end the bright white." He paused, almost as if letting it sink in would make her want him to stop. "I was taken to a Yuuzhan Vong nursery. I had been hanging in a seedship. In the Nursery I… befriended a young dhuryam, one competing for the role of World Brain on Yuuzhan'tar."_

_ "You mean Coruscant?"_

_ "No. I mean Yuuzhan'tar. In the Nursery, I freed the other slaves, and…terminated the dhuryams, save one. Ana-Vergere stopped me from murdering the one I had befriended. After that all I remember is waking up on Yuuzhan'tar._

_ "Vergere had healed me with her tears. I was a lost bantha on an exotic planet…I went where anyone would go. Home, the place of my upbringing. I thought maybe if I went there I would change…" Once again Jacen had stopped, and Jaina could tell he wasn't going into the whole truth about how he got to their childhood home._

"_I sat in my chair at the dinning room table, in the middle of you and mother." He said with a sad smile, "Nom Anor showed up in our dining room. Offering me my position as Yun-Yammka, and... a lightsaber."_

"_A lightsaber? Nom Anor had a lightsaber? Was it yours, because I noticed you had yours." _

"_No, it was not mine."_

"_Who's was it?"_

"_Another fallen Jedi." Jaina felt a small wave of guilt come over Jacen, but decided to let it be._

"_So what did you do?"_

" _I accepted his offer." _

_Her jaw dropped. Through the darkness, she heard Jacen chuckle to himself, gaping she asked, "Are you crazy? Why are you laughing?"_

_ "Oh sister, if I had truly taken on the role of the Yuuzhan Vong twin, would I be here laying in the floor on Mon Cal?" _

_ " I suppose not. Go on." _

_ " I played the Yuuzhan Vong for weeks. But my acting soon turned into stalling. I was running out of time. Until Ganner Rhysode showed up."_

_ "Ganner? He came for you?" _

_ "Yes, Jaina. Ganner came for me." Now his voice was drown in sorrow not only from Jacen, but from Jaina herself. She felt the blood rush to her face._

_ Her voice was once again a whisper, "What happened?"_

_ "He died…He died a hero's death." Though it was a moment of sadness, Jaina's snort lightened the mood._

_ "Ganner Rhysode. Who would've guessed? He died for you?"_

_Jacen was quiet, but this time he seemed to be thinking over something, "Yes. He gave his life, so I could live mine."_

_ Jaina had tears running down her cheeks and her voice was uneasy, "Oh, force! I own him everything! And the last time I ever spoke to him, I practically spat in his face for even thinking you could be alive. I told him never to speak of those _rumors _again. He didn't. He just went after you himself."_

_ "Jaina, I'm going to tell you something, something you can take a number of different ways. During the journey to Mon Cal, Vergere told me of a vision she had. At the time she couldn't understand it, but now everything made sense._

_ "Vergere saw a new twist in Yuuzhan Vong mythology. A new figure had made its way into the bedtime stories of Vong generations to come. A new monument dedicated to _The Ganner," _Jacen stopped, due to Jaina's gasp and let it all sink in," The part that_ _still confuses myself and Vergere is the inscription. The words are in basic and they read: __**None shall pass**__._

_ "__Unfortunately the story of Ganner Rhysode will only be known to the lucky few in the New Republic, but the galaxy as a whole will have knowledge of the last great stand of Ganner Rhysode."_

_Now it was Jaina's turn to be silent. She had begged for the truth, and here she got what she wanted. As always Jacen had been right, Jaina had a new burden to bear. Knowing the last words she had said to a friend were cruel and full of hate. _

_ "Well, Jaina. Your thoughts." Jacen asked, practically reading her mind._

_ "Your right. I know there is more you're not telling me, but I don't want to know. The Yuuzhan Vong have broken this family, I'm ready for the mend. No more pain. No one else is going to die or hurt. The Yuuzhan Vong's reign is coming to an end. This I promise you."_

_ Jacen's voice had once again, taken on his sad demeanor, "Choose and act, Jaina. Choose and act." _

A strong hand was shaking her shoulder, "Jaina? Jaina?" Jacen's voice was a whisper. Jaina opened her eyes to the faded black silhouette of her brother against the constant moving light of the Holonet.

"Sorry, Jacen I guess I fell asleep." Her head cleared and she was dragged back into reality.

"Oh, well. We can talk in the morning." He said with one of those famous lopsided grins.

"No, no. Tell me everything from your trip now." She sat up and braced herself, though there didn't seem to be a reason to bring up her wall.

"Oh, Jaina," His face lit up, "Jaina, there is so much to tell. Some many things to help the Order. The Outer Rim and the Maw were actually very interesting…"

Jaina sat and listened to even more of Jacen's crazy adventures through twin black holes or crystal caverns. _Welcome home, Jacen. Welcome home. _

** Thanks for reading I hope you enjoyed it! Comments and questions are welcome and greatly appreciated. And can I ask a favor? What do you want from this story? What direction would you like to see a Jaina, Jacen, and Ben story go? Thanks!**


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